Woodside Biomedical, Inc. currently markets a wrist-borne nausea control device under the trademark RELIEFBAND®. The device is effective in alleviating the nauseous symptoms of motion sickness, morning sickness, anesthesia drugs and chemotherapy drugs. The device applies pulses of electrical stimulation to a specific point on the wrist, referred to as the P6 acupuncture point. The treatment provided by the device is sometimes referred to as electro-acupuncture, which is a form of acupuncture, and the ventral site of application is referred to in the acupuncture art as the P6 point, pericardium 6 point, or master point of the pericardium meridian (sometimes referred to as the vascular meridian). It is also portable, self-contained and convenient to the patient. Electrical pulse repetition rate of approximately 70 pulses per second and a pulse width of 80 microseconds have been found to provide effective relief of nausea in a patient. Our currently preferred electrical pulse pattern comprises about 350 microsecond pulse width at about 31 pulses per second at power levels of about 10–35 milliamps peak pulse height. Thus a wide range of pulse patterns may be used in non-invasive nerve stimulation devices.
Recently, the K9 Korean acupressure point has been identified as a point that may be manually stimulated to relieve post-operative nausea. Initial testing of electrical stimulation of the K-9 acupressure point indicates that it will alleviate nausea.